Antitumor-promoting effects of polyphenolic extracts from seedless and seeded Indian grapes.

Grapes, the widely consumed fruits, are rich in polyphenols. The biological and chemopreventive activities of grape seed polyphenols have been demonstrated, while similar information regarding crude polyphenolic extracts from whole grapes and their components (pulp plus skin, seeds), particularly the seedless varieties, is lacking. Cancer chemoprevention can be achieved by inhibition of either initiation or promotion/progression stages of carcinogenesis. This study involves the determination of the polyphenolic content extracted from green (Pandhari sahebi, Thompson seedless) and black cultivars (Bangalore blue, Sharad seedless) of Indian grapes and their components (whole grapes, pulp plus skin, and seeds). Comparative evaluation of antitumor-promoting effects of seedless and seeded grape polyphenolic extracts (GPEs) was carried out in carcinogen-initiated and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-promoted S/RVCri-ba mouse skin and stomach, as well as esophagus of ICRC mice. The yield of crude polyphenolic extracts from whole grapes and their components varied between 3% and 51%. The total polyphenolic content expressed as mg catechin equivalents/g crude polyphenolic extract ranged from 0.47 to 701 in seeded grapes and 1.49 to 28.30 in seedless varieties. Both seedless and seeded GPEs possessed antitumor-promoting activity in target tissues of mice as is evident from their ability to delay tumor formation along with a significant decrease in tumor multiplicity and incidence. Marked and sustained epidermal hyperplasia observed in 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene-initiated and TPA-promoted mice was greatly reduced on pretreatment with GPE or catechin. The polyphenolic extracts from Sharad seedless and seeds of Bangalore blue showed the strongest suppressing activity comparable to catechin than the corresponding whole grapes. The results suggest that the chemopreventive activity of polyphenols extracted from seedless grape cultivars was as effective as that of the seeded variety and these may have beneficial effects in disease states, especially cancer.

Scavenging effect of Indian grape polyphenols on 2,2'-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl(DPPH) radical by electron spin resonance spectrometry.

Antioxidant potency of Indian grape cultivars varying in their skin color, seed and polyphenol content (Bangalore blue, Pandhari sahebi, Sharad seedless and Thompson seedless) and their components (whole grapes, pulp with skin and seeds) was examined as 2,2'-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity using electron spin resonance spectrometry. The total polyphenols in Indian grapes ranged between 3-51%. Extracted polyphenols caused a concentration dependent and significant loss in DPPH radical signal, similar to known antioxidants-Vitamin C, catechin and procyanidin B3 used as references. Among seedless cultivars, polyphenols from Sharad was more potent as antioxidant than Thompson, showing IC50 values of 1250 +/- 30 and 2650 +/- 125 microg/ml, respectively. The inhibitory effect of polyphenols from seedless grape cultivars was as effective as that of seeded variety. The results indicate that polyphenols extracted from Indian grapes/ components (with /without seeds) exhibited free radical scavenging activity and their chemopreventive properties need to be exploited by in vivo model system.

Evaluation of DNA damage in mice topically exposed to total particulate matter from mainstream and sidestream smoke from cigarettes and bidis.

The genotoxic potential of total particulate matter (TPM) from mainstream smoke (MS) and sidestream smoke (SS) of Indian smoking products, namely cigarettes and bidis, as well as a brand of US cigarettes, was studied by determining the levels of bulky aromatic DNA adducts in mouse tissues. TPM from MS or SS of various smoking products [equal weights (2.5 mg) or the amount derived from equal (0.25) cigarette/bidi] was applied topically to mouse skin once a day for four consecutive days and adduct levels were determined in DNA from skin and lung by (32)P-post-labelling analysis. Relatively higher levels of bulky aromatic DNA adducts were noted in mouse skin treated with MS from a single Indian non-filter (INF) cigarette when compared with MS of a single bidi (with about half the product weight and one-quarter the tobacco compared with a cigarette), while comparable adduct levels were noted with SS from these two products. Considering the differences in the yields of constituents of tobacco smoke from the different products analyzed, the genotoxic potential of INF, Indian filter king (IFK) and American filter (AF) cigarettes as well as bidis was determined by topically applying an equal amount of TPM (rather than equal product-derived TPM). SS-derived TPM from all the products showed relatively higher levels of total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and induced relatively higher levels of bulky aromatic DNA adducts than those derived from MS. The data indicate that TPM (MS + SS) from cigarettes appears to be more genotoxic than that from bidis and the contribution of tendu leaf (a non-tobacco bidi wrapper) to the generation of bulky aromatic DNA adducts appears to be significant, particularly in SS of bidis. Topical pretreatment with curcumin decreased the levels of TPM-derived adducts while pretreatment with dietary turmeric failed to show such protection.